Diverse campus showing strains

U. of I. Muslims fear for safety

CHAMPAIGN — In the weeks following the terrorist attacks, a campus with one of the nation's most internationally diverse student bodies has been a scene of both moving harmony and shocking discord.

At the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign--which boasts the 10th largest international student body in the country--there have been scores of tearful student rallies and memorial services and an outpouring of support for victims of the attacks. One student held an impromptu a cappella concert that drew thousands and raised more than $5,600 for Red Cross relief efforts.

But there has also been an ugly side for the hundreds of Muslim students on campus.

One Muslim graduate student received a death threat in campus mail. Two other Muslim students reported that campus custodial service workers had accused them of being terrorists. Some Muslim students heard racial slurs.

And in the most serious reported case yet, one student started a fight in a campus bar when he allegedly called an Indian student a terrorist and threw a punch at him. That incident led to a brawl involving about 20 students in the bar, and Champaign police had to use pepper spray to break up the fight.

Like their counterparts at scores of universities across the country, U. of I. leaders have been forced into a frustrating position following the Sept. 11 attacks: working to restore peace on a diverse campus in the aftermath of a national tragedy. But that job has been even more pressing here because of the campus' large Muslim student population and the new university chancellor's key goal of promoting cultural and racial diversity.

Although discouraged by the troubles, university officials have responded quickly to the problems and hope to make promoting diversity an even more prevalent theme this year in light of the national tragedy.

Along with the teach-ins and forums, sensitivity training has been held for custodial staff members. New Chancellor Nancy Cantor has taken the lead on the issue, speaking at several forums and calling for racial tolerance and understanding.

"While we have all witnessed many acts of courage and togetherness these past two weeks, a number of incidents of intolerance that have taken place across this nation--and sadly, even here--prompt this message," Cantor wrote in a campuswide Internet site posting. "We must not allow our grief and outrage at the crimes in New York and Washington turn to hate. We must not let our sense of violation turn us against those who may appear to be outsiders."

The outpouring of support helped to quell the fears of many Muslim students, among them Arshia Ahmed and roommate Sadya Khan, who stayed secluded in their apartment for a full day after the attack.

"My parents said to keep inside, don't go out unless you need to," said Ahmed, a sophomore from Naperville. "We felt like we were hiding from someone out there who was trying to harm us."

But after a day, they emerged feeling supported and safe.

"In the beginning, people might have been angry, but now they're more understanding," said Khan, a senior from Bensenville, as she stood on the campus quadrangle last week, proudly wearing a traditional Muslim head scarf and a navy blue Illinois sweatshirt.

But as at most U.S. college campuses, there's still great concern here for how a diverse group of students will react to each other as the war on terrorism evolves.

Nationally, hundreds of international students from the Middle East have withdrawn from their campuses and returned home. Many universities have reported incidents of attacks against Muslim students. At DePaul University in Chicago, a small Muslim student group temporarily disbanded after receiving a string of threatening e-mails, apparently sent by groups outside the campus.

At the U. of I., many Muslim students say they anticipate problems continuing.

Ali Ammoura, a junior who is an officer in the Muslim Student Association, is frustrated by people who blame all Muslims for the actions of extremist groups. He worries that the threats and incidents reflect widespread racism toward Muslim Americans.

"This has shown me that people aren't very educated at all," he said. "People have to realize that we're all immigrants here. It's quite ironic that people tell us to go back home when this is our home."

Paras Mehta, president of the Indian Students Association, said an escort service was set up for students concerned for their safety.

Campus administrators have distributed fliers and e-mails encouraging students to report any threats or incidents and promised to follow up on each of them.

In the most serious campus incident so far, the bar fight, three students were initially charged by Champaign police. But the Champaign County state's attorney's office referred them to a first-time offender adult-diversion program that requires community service and restitution, police spokeswoman Joan Walls said.

Still, the school's discipline committee is pursuing the incident, and the students could face suspension or expulsion after that investigation, said U. of I. spokesman Bill Murphy.

Although student leaders were disturbed by the threats against Muslims, many said the terrorist attacks also have helped unite the campus. Last week, student leaders met in the local mosque to discuss how to bring the university's diverse population closer together.

"This campus, like everywhere else, has had incidents of ignorance," student trustee Eamon Kelly said after the meeting. "But the amount that people's minds have been opened has been tremendous."